An evening for conservatives

All of the Republican candidates for North Carolina’s eighth Congressional district attended the Sweet Union Republican Women’s Club meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 24, at the Golden Corral in Monroe. The evening consisted of a dinner, followed by the club’s monthly meeting.

The majority of the meeting was dedicated to the six candidates: Richard Hudson, Vernon Robinson, Scott Keadle, Daniel Barry, John Whitley and Fred Steen. Each candidate was given six minutes to tell a little about himself and why he desires to be the Representative for the eighth precinct. More than 30 people – men and women – came out to meet the candidates and hear what they had to say.

Kicking off the presentations was candidate Richard Hudson, owner of the Cabarrus Marketing Group and former chief of staff for Texas congressman Mike Conaway. Hudson cited his experience as a strongpoint of his politics. “I can go up there, day one, and be your Representative,” Hudson said. “Because I know the committee process. I know how it works, and we can get things done.”

One of Hudson’s main policies is reaching out to conservative Democrats to get them on board with the Republican party and its goals. “The Democrats are going to come after us, tooth and nail,” he said. “We’ve got to make sure we drag every single vote to the polls, and that means we’ll have to go out and build coalitions with conservative Democrats.”

Vernon Robinson, a former Winston-Salem city council member, was the second candidate to speak. Robinson’s main focus was on what he calls the “three enemies” of conservatives: the Left, big businesses and lobbyists who try to “gain the system,” and the GOP Washington establishment, “which is just as bad as the Left,” he said.

Robinson also vowed to work to prevent members of Congress from passing laws that apply to citizens but not to themselves. He also promised to work for the citizens, stating, “The only folks that have to call me ‘Congressman’ are lobbyists and Richard Hayes. Everyone else can call me ‘Vernon’ because I am your employee.”

The third speaker of the evening was Scott Keadle, former regional chairman for Americans for Prosperity. Keadle’s main standpoint was defending the Constitution. “We have a blueprint for America,” Keadle said. “It’s called the Constitution of the United States. It has been ignored for decades by members of Congress on both sides of the aisle, by just about everybody that’s sat in the Oval Office.”

Keadle stated that ignoring the Constitution has placed America in peril, and he challenged attendants to find someone from the eighth precinct, someone from the state of North Carolina and someone to be President who will stand up for the Constitution.

Daniel Barry, currently Mayor Pro Tem of Weddington, was fourth in line to present. Barry focused his address on the fact that he is from Union County and encouraged attendants to “elect one of (their) own.”

He also stated that this election is all about jobs and that the government needs to lower taxes across the board to help entrepreneurs and small businesses to thrive again. “I’ve spent the last 25 years working with small business owners and entrepreneurs, helping them uncover ways that they can expand their businesses and protect their businesses for future generations,” Barry said. “I want to put that experience to work for you here in the eighth district, for North Carolina and for the American people.”

John Whitley, the only candidate who has never held a public office, was the fifth speaker. Whitley cited his inexperience as a strength. “I am a person of deep conviction,” Whitley said. “I’m an individual who believes that this moment, I was pretty much made for.”

From his experience as a doctor, Whitley has recently been exposed to ObamaCare, and he doesn’t like it. One of the reasons he decided to run is to work hard to repeal ObamaCare. “Not only does (ObamaCare) affect me as a physician; it affects every one of you in this room,” he said. “Your health, your livelihood, your welfare, your children. If you look to see what ObamaCare has passed each day, just look at the failure in any kind of job recovery. There has been none.”

The sixth and final candidate to present was Fred Steen, who has served in the North Carolina House of Representatives. Steen spoke on several social and legal issues, including Ethen’s Law and the Defense of Marriage Act. “We worked on Ethen’s Law, the unborn victims of violence bill, which I’ve worked on since 2004,” Steen said. “Finally, we had a majority that would allow us to pass this.”

For Steen, social issues are the backbone of his political platform. “Life is very critical,” he said. “I believe in the defense of marriage, also. These are very critical things that we need to do here at the state level and in Washington.”

Other than being Republicans, a common denominator that connected each candidate was the desire to motivate Republican voters (and others as well) to take charge of the government, prevent Congressman Larry Kissel and President Obama from being reelected and restore the country to its conservative principles.